Washington (CNN) - House Republicans on Thursday elected Kevin McCarthy as majority leader, succeeding Eric Cantor, who is relinquishing the job after losing his primary election in an upset earlier this month.

The California Republican defeated Idaho Rep. Raul Labrador for the No. 2 position, which is responsible for the day-to-day running of the chamber and deciding which bills come to the floor for a vote.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - A government shutdown looked increasingly likely on Saturday as Republican leaders said the House would vote on two potentially deal-killing amendments to the stopgap spending bill the Senate passed Friday.

"The American people don't want a government shutdown and they don't want Obamacare," House Republican leaders said in statement.

(CNN) – President Barack Obama's newfound desire to meet rank-and-file Republican lawmakers may be more about politics than pact-making, House Republican Whip Kevin McCarthy suggested Sunday.

Last week, Obama took a dozen Republican lawmakers to dinner in Washington, and later invited House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan for lunch at the White House. Next week he'll head to Capitol Hill for meetings with the full GOP coalitions in both the House and the Senate, as well as the entire Democratic caucus in each chamber.FULL POST

(CNN) – President Barack Obama's trip Friday to a toy factory outside Philadelphia was getting negative reviews from Republicans before he even left town – House Speaker John Boehner accused Obama on Thursday of taking a "victory lap" instead of getting serious about budget negotiations.

Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, the number three House Republican, released a video Friday profiling another small business owner in Pennsylvania who says Obama's pledge to raise taxes on families making more than $250,000 per year would harm entrepreneurs.FULL POST

(CNN) – Rep. Kevin McCarthy, the third ranking House Republican, is hosting a screening for fellow GOP representatives tomorrow to watch the movie "Lincoln" - starring Daniel Day Lewis as President Abraham Lincoln - according to McCarthy's spokeswoman.

This isn't the first time McCarthy has invited his GOP colleagues to view a movie. He also held a screening of the movie "Moneyball," because his aide notes, he believes in using metrics/numbers. That movie tells the story of a baseball team's general manager assembling players using a metric-based approach.

He also raised some eyebrows for showing a violent scene in the movie "The Town" at a GOP conference meeting when leaders were discussing negotiations with Democrats.

(CNN) – It was the end of a long, hot day in Israel when it happened: Republican lawmakers, along with a smattering of aides and family members, dived into the Sea of Galilee, a holy site for Christians where the Bible says Jesus walked on water.

Several GOP sources familiar with the events on August 4, 2011 said one of those Republicans, Rep. Kevin Yoder of Kansas, wasn't wearing any clothes. Others say they dived in for religious reasons.FULL POST

Washington (CNN) – A top aide to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor is leaving Capitol Hill to start a new Super PAC aimed at supporting Republican candidates and promoting the House GOP's agenda.

Cantor's Deputy Chief of Staff John Murray told CNN in a phone interview Wednesday that he's leaving his post at the end of the week to launch the new political group. Murray says his goals are twofold - to help GOP candidates with campaign resources and "put a muscular communications voice behind center-right candidates and policies that are in line with the 'Young Guns' movement."FULL POST

(CNN) - Democrats and Republicans disagreed Sunday over the takeaway from deficit reduction negotiations led by Vice President Joe Biden that broke down when House Majority Leader Eric Cantor left the table.

Republican House Whip Kevin McCarthy of California said Sunday that $2.4 trillion in cuts were agreed on during the negotiations, but Rep. Chris Van Hollen, who participated in the talks, said Republicans are "dreaming" if they think the two sides reached that conclusion.FULL POST